Automatic



Patentd Sept. 13; 1921.

3 SHEETS SHEET I.

F. L. ZYBACH.

AUTOMATIC TRACTOR GUIDE:

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 8. I920.

kw WM mv m WW \WW N 8 1 I L39A19n F. L. ZYBACH.

AUTOMATIC TRACTOR GUIDE.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 8. 1920.

1,39,419. PatentedSept. 13,1921.

3 SHE ETSSHEET 2- F. L., ZYIBACH.

AUTOMATIC TRACTOR GUIDE. APPLICATION FILED OCT. 8, 1920.

1,390,419, Patentedflept. 13,1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

gram/11 C 0'0 GU 0: new

To all w 7mm it may concern UNITED STATES.

PA ENT OFFICE FRANK L. ZYBAGH, or enAiyii Is ANn nn RAsKA.

AUTOMATIC TRACTOR-GUIDE.

Be it known that I, FRANK L. ZYBACH, a citizen ofvthe United States, residing at Grand Island, in the county of Hall and State of Nebraska, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Tractor-Guides, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to tractor guides and the primary object of the invention is to.

of the tractor will be automatically. stopped when the tractor becomes 'out of alinement with the previously plowedfurrow, or when the plow becomes accidentally detached from the tractor.

A further object. of' the invention is to provide an improved guide or pilot head for the tractor steering attachment, said pilot or guiding head being so constructed that the likelihood of the same riding out of the furrow is reduced to a minimum. A further object of the invention is to provide an automatic means for stopping the operation of the tractor when the plows become clogged with debris, thereby insuring a clean cut furrow for the guide or pilot head.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved automatic steering attachment for tractors during the plowing operation which is so arranged that the tractor engine will be automatically stopped under any conditions out of'the ordinary, thereby absolutely eliminating accidents or crooked furrows. 1

With these andother objects in view, the invention consists in the novel construction, arrangement and formation of parts aswill be hereinafter more specifically described, claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which drawings:

Figurel is a plan view of a tractor and plow illustrating the improved steering means incorporated therewith.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevation of a tractor showing the improved Specification of Letters Patent. I, Patjgnted Sept 13,

Application filed October 8, 1920. Serial No; 415,588.

' ated by the steering wheel 20.

steering Smeans, attached thereto and illuS- trating position. I

Fig. 3'is an enlarged fragmentary plan the improved attachment'with the steering the pilot or guide head in steering I view illustrating the means of incorporating T connecting rod and stub steering axles of a tractor,

Fige is an enlarged fragi'nentary longi tudlnal sectlcnlthrough a tractor having the improved attachment connected thereto, and

showing more particularly the switch forf automatlcallycutting out the operation of;

the mo -any accident befalls the plows or pilot head. a I.

F g.' 5 is a view simiflarto 3 illusQ 1 trating the position of the pilot head and switch member'if the steerin'gwheels of the tractor are turned toojfar to the left. Fig.6 1s a viewsimi'lar to Fig. 5 illustrating, the ,position of the pilot head and automatlc cut out switch when the steering 1, wheels of the tractor'are turned toofar to I the rig-ht, and} i a so Fig. 7 is a fragmentaryside elevation of the plows illustratingthe means' f connecting the emergencycable with the plows and showing the positionof the emergency clalgle when the plows become clogged with re r1s.-

Referringto'the drawings in detail,where- I in similar'reference characters designatecorresponding parts ,throughout the several views, the letter Aindicates a tractor, B,'the

plow, and C the improved automatic guiding j attachment for the tractor and plow- Thefltractor A may be of any preferred make, size'or style, and as shown includes the body 10 "having the rear drive wheels 11, theffront steering wheels 12 and the motor 13; The steering Wheels 12 are mounted in the usual manner upon the stub axles 14 which are inturn swivelly carried by the I end ofthe dead axle or beam 15. The stub axles 14 are: provided in the ordinary manner with the rearwardlyextending guide arms 16, whichare connected by the connectaxles haveconnected thereto in the usual manner the steering rod 19, whlch 1s oper- The plow B may be of the usual preferred type used in tractor plowing and as shown includes the wheeled support ng ing rods 17. The steering arm 18 of the stub 1 or any i frame 21, the inner and outer plow beams g2 and :23. The inner and outer plow beams The improved attachment C for autom'ati-' cally steering thetractor comprises an arm 30 which is secured to the forward end of the steering arm 16 of the. right hand side of the tractor. The arm 30 extends forwardly of the steering wheel 12 on' the right hand side of'tlie tractor and terminates in a right angularly extending pin 31. This pin 31 is arranged directlyin front of the right hand. steering wheel and rotatably receives the sleeve 32 of the rod 33 of the :pilot head 34.

The pilot head 34 is of a simple construction and is so formed as'to engage in the furrow in advance of the steering wheel for guiding the tractor. The construction of the pilot head 34 is such that the possibility of the same riding 'out' of a'furrow is reduced to a minimum. .As shown, this head 34 isformed by bending the free lower terminal of the rod 33 into a substantially U-' shape as designated by the numeral 35. The bottom of the U is bent slightly toward the left for engagement with the'furrow, and

the terminal thereof leans slightly away from the furrow wall. An arcuate iron shield 37 is carried by the head 34, and projects outwardly from the right side of the U as clearly shown in the drawings. It also can be seen by referring to Fig. 2 of the drawings thatthe guide rod 33 curves clownwardly and forwardly from the pin 31.

Thus it will be seen that the pilot guide head34 riding inthe furrow will effectively turn the guide wheels to the right or left according'to the direction of the furrow.

A cable 40 is secured at'41'to the plow beam 23', directly above the plow share 25 and this cable is trained around a guide pulley 42, which is carried by a Supporting rod 43, which is clamped as at 44' to the axle beam 15. The forward end of the cable is secured by means of a coupling 45 to the cross connectingrod 17. This cablehas interposed therein adjacent to its forward end, a contractile coil-spring 46 and this spring is un der suflicient tension so as to normally holdthe pilot'head 34 in engagement with t'he'l-and side of the furrow. This will effectivelywpermit' the guiding of the tractor by means ofthepilot head.

A switch member 50. is adapted to'be operated'by the pilot'head 34 for stopping the -operationlof the motor 13 if the pilot head 34 out of the furrow or if the plow B becomes accidentally detached from the trac; tor Th'1s switch 'mechani'sm 50 is inter- Posedfin the'igniticn sy e f the andfincludes a stationary spring contact 51 and a removable contact 52. The contacts 51 and52 are connected by means of WiFQS 53 and 54 with the ignition system. The movable contact 52 is carried by the insulated ends 55 of the arm 56 of a three armed lever 57. This three armed lever 57 is secured for movement on the shaft 58 upon which is keyed the guide pulley 42., The wires 53 and 54 are connected in the ignition circuit of the motor 13 and when the movable contact 52 is in engagement with the stationary contact 51, the circuit through the ignition system is closed. The arms of the three armed lever 57 extend at quarters from the hub of the lever and the arm 58 is arranged intermediate the arm 56 and the arm 59. The free end of the arm 58 is provided with spring fingers 60 which receive the headed end of the emergency rod 61. The inner end of the emergency rod'61 is secured by means of a clamp 62 to the cable 40, in rear of the spring 46. The provision of this emergency rod'61 permits the automatic stopping of the tractor when the plow becomes detached from the tractor, or; when the plow becomes clogged with debris as clearly shown in Fig. 7 of the drawings.

loose from the tractor, considerable strain avill be placed upon the rod 61 which will turn the three armed lever 57 on the pivot pin or shaft 58 which will move the moV-' able contact 52 out of engagement withtlie stationary contact 51. This immediately stops the operation of the motor. If the tension on the rod 61 is such that the three armed lever is swung beyond a predetermined point the headed end of the rod will ride out of engagement with the spring fingers formed on the end of the arm 58 and thus prevent any damage being done to the three arm lever.

To insure that the furrow which is to be used as a iide furrow is free from all debris, the cable 40 has been so secured to the plow beam 23 that when debris collects on the plow, the same will be raised into engagement with the cable 40 and exert a ten? si'on on the same. This is shown in Fig. 7 of'the drawings. This tension exerted on the cable 40 will in turn pull on the rod 61 and move the movable contact 52 from out of engagement with the stationary contact 51 as heretobefore described.

The free end of the arm 59 of the three armed lever 57 is provided with a headed pin 63 which is slidably mounted in a slot'64 formed in the free end of a connecting rod I 65. This connecting rod 65 is pivotally connected as at 66 to the steering arm 16 and is r nary corners at the terminals of the field, no movement of the arm 65 will be transmitted to the three armed lever 57 owing to the slot 64. However, when the wheels are turned beyond a predetermined-point, either to the left or right as shown in Figs. Sand 6 of the drawings, the arm 65 will be moved beyond a predetermined point and swing the three armed lever on the pivotpin orshaft 58 which will cause the contact 52to be moved out of engagement with the contact 51. This causes the breaking of the ignition circuit.

From the foregoing description, it can be seen that a very effective and simple arrangement has been provided for automatically guiding a tractor during the plowing operation and which is so arranged in relation to the plow and tractor that in case of any emergency or accident, the tractor engine will be automatically stopped.

It can be seen that when the tractor makes a turn to the left, the distance between the front part of the tractor A and the right hand plow share 25 is naturally increased, which draws the cable somewhat tighter,

, thereby increasing the tension of the spring 46. The tension of the spring 46 is thus increased just when it is most needed to turn the wheels to the left, causing the pilot head 34: to run close to the left side of the furrow while making the curve, thus keeping the tractor in a true course around the field. If, on the other hand, the tractor is making a turn to the right in a furrow, it causes the cable 40 to slack a little which relieves some of the tension on the spring 46 thus allowing the guide rod and pilot head to run more freely in the furrow. To facilitate the movement of cable 40 and to prevent the dragging thereof on the ground, a guide 40 is secured to the tractor. A plurality of rearwardly extending guide fingers 25' are carried by the plow 24 so as to throw all debris to one side thereof and thus further insure the making of clean furrows.

Changes in details may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of this invention; but,

I claim:

1. In combination with a tractor including a steering mechanism and a plow, of an automatic actuating mechanism for said steering mechanism including a pilot member adapted to ride in a furrow and follow the curvature thereof, means operatively connecting the pilot member to the steering mechanism of the tractor, means for automatically stopping the tractor, when the pilot member leaves the furrow, and means for automatically operating said last mentioned means upon accidental detachment of the plow from the tractor.

2. In combination with a tractor including a steering mechanism and a plow, of an automatic actuating nlechanism for said steeringumechanism including a pilot member adapted to ridein a furrow and follow the curvature thereof, means operatively connecting the pilot member to the steering mechanism. of the tractor, meansfor auto matically stopping the tractor, when the pilot member leaves the furrow, and means for automatically operating said,last mentioned means when the plow P becomes clogged-with debris. I

3; In combination with a tractor; includ ing a steering mechanism 'and a plow connected tois'aiditractor',"of an automatic ace tuating device for said steering mechanism including a pilot member adapted to ride in a furrow, spring means for normally holding the pilot member in engagement with one wall of the furrow, means connecting the pilot member with the steering mechanism, means attaching the plow with the steering mechanism, and means actuated either by said plow connecting means or said pilot member for automatically stopping the operation of the tractor in cases of emergency.

4:. In combination with a tractor including a steering mechanism, a driving motor having an ignition system, and a plow connected to said tractor, of an automatic actuating device for said steering mechanism including 95 a pilot member adapted to ride in a furrow and follow the curvature thereof, means connecting the pilot member with the steering mechanism of a tractor, a cable connecting the plow with the steering mechanism, a switch interposed in the ignition system of the engine, and means actuated either by said cable or pilot member for operating said switch under certain conditions.

5. In combination with a tractor including 105 a steering mechanism and an internal combustion engine having an ignition system, and a plow connected to said tractor, of an automatic actuating mechanism for said steering mechanism including a pilot 'mem- 110 ber adapted to ride in a furrow, spring means normally holding the pilot member in engagement with one wall of the furrow, means operatively connecting the pilot member with the steering mechanism, a switch inter- I posed in the ignition circuit including a movable contact and a stationary contact,

a lever carrying said movable contact, a pin on said lever, a slotted arm arranged to receive said pin, means connecting the arm to the steering mechanism, a cable connecting the plow with the steering mechanism, and means connecting the cable with the lever carrying the movable contact.

6. In combination, a tractor including a steering mechanism having a pair of stub axles, steering arms carried by the stub axles, and a rod connecting said steering arms, and an internal combustion engine havlng an ignition system, and a plow connectedto said tractor, of an actuating device for the, steering mechanism including a forwardly extending rod connected to one of said steering arms, a steering rod connected to said arm for swinging movement in a vertical plane, a pilot head connected to said steering rod, a switch interposed in said ig. nition circuit including-a stationary contact and a movable contact, a cable connecting the plow and the rod connected to the steering arms,,a movable three arm-lever, means connecting the movable contact with one of the arms, a .pin carried by another one of said arms, a slotted rod slidablv receiving said pin, means connecting the slotted rod'with said mentioned steering 'IOd, a contractile coil spring interposed in said cable,'and an emergency rod connected to said. cable in rear of said spring and to one of the arms of the tree arm lever.

7. Inna tractor steering mechanism, a steering rod, a depending U-shaped terminal formed on said rod, and a guard shield 18X- tending around said U-shaped terminal.

FRANK L. ZYBACH. 

